1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing system configured to perform a virtual job using combination of a plurality of image processing apparatuses that can communicate with one another via a network.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, leakage of corporate confidential information to the outside by printing, copying, or facsimile transmission for unauthorized use has been a serious social issue.
In order to establish internal control over business operations and prevent such unauthorized use from occurring, a conventional content log management system which acquires, stores, and later monitors every operation history and data processing of office equipments used in performing business operations has been developed.
With a content log management system like this, business managers and administrators can monitor the business operations performed by employees and content data thereof in an image information apparatus installed in their offices. Further, the employees know that their business operations are monitored by the content log management system so that it can be expected that an insider including the employee is deterred from participating in criminal activities.
Meanwhile, office equipments that perform printing, copying, and facsimile transmission have greatly improved with a recent progress in the digital image processing techniques. For example, a multifunction peripheral (MFP) which can perform multiple functions of image processing has been developed. Further, such image processing apparatuses can be connected to a network such as an intranet.
Furthermore, a large capacity hard disk drive (HDD) is provided on the MFP. Document data to be printed and image data scanned for copying is stored in a predetermined area (hereinafter referred to as a “Box”) of the HDD and can be separately reused afterwards. In addition, a network-connection function is usually provided to the MFP as its standard function. Thus, an increasing number of offices are using a broadband network.
Under such circumstances, in a conventional image processing system, convenience of office equipments is improved using a plurality of MFPs operating in cooperation with one another via a network.
Such an image processing system uses, in performing a copy job, a function for scanning an image on one MFP and transferring the scanned image to another MFP via the network to print the scanned image on the receiving MFP. When a plurality of MFPs of an image processing system distributed on a network is virtually used as single office equipment, each MFP is collectively referred to as a “virtual device”.
A virtual device is useful in the following point. A virtual device can improve locational convenience of an MFP installed in an office and an MFP having a relatively low-level function can utilize optional functions such as a finisher and a facsimile transmission. Thus, a job conventionally performed by a high-performance MFP can also be performed similarly on a virtual device as a virtual job.
The above-described conventional method can perform a so-called “virtual copy”. With the virtual copy technique, various finishing processing such as two-sided printing and stapling can be implemented according to functions of an MFP that performs the actual printing.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-72465 discusses a method for preventing a secure print from being set in a case where an electronic document is sent from a client apparatus to a printer apparatus and security is set for the electronic document itself.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-33868 discusses a method in a remote copy system that prevents duplicated charging by determining whether charging processing has been performed on either a scanner and a printer.
In the above-described image processing system, it is necessary to operate the above-described content log management system also on the virtual devices in order to monitor each and every content data processed in business operations performed by users of the virtual device.
On the other hand, according to the conventional method, the following problems may occur when a content log stored on the virtual device is acquired.
The conventional method acquires a content log during scanning of an original document with the MFP and also acquires a content log of printing of the document on the MFP that receives and prints the scan data. The series of processing are merely performed as virtual copy processing on the virtual device. However, the conventional method acquires a content log twice, namely, at the time of scanning the original document and at the time of printing the scanned document.
Basically, in a content log management system, it is enough to record information about who processed which document having what content where and when. Accordingly, it is enough to acquire a content log only once for each job. If a content log is acquired twice, duplicated content logs may exert pressure on an area of the HDD that stores data. Further, the load on the network for transferring the content data may become large.
Thus, a user who manages and operates the system may suffer unnecessary increase of system management costs.
Meanwhile, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-72465 discusses a technique that prevents duplicated setting of security for electronic document printing. Furthermore, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-72465 discusses a method for determining whether to apply security information which is dually set, in a job receiving apparatus.
If the method discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-72465 is applied to acquisition of a duplicated content log in the virtual devices, a content log may not be acquired when it is necessary to perform the acquisition of the content log in a virtual job sending apparatus. This is because the performance of the image processing apparatus such as a data processing speed or a capacity for temporarily storing content data affects the acquisition of a content log and thus it may become necessary to previously acquire a content log on the virtual job sending apparatus.
Further, a data server may degenerate duplicated data after doubly acquiring a content log. However, a load on a network cannot be reduced in this case because the content data is dually transmitted.